


Flowers for a Fool

by awkwardbirdnoise



Series: The Fool [1]
Category: GreedFall (Video Game)
Genre: F/M, GreedFall Spoilers, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-27
Updated: 2019-09-27
Packaged: 2020-10-29 03:22:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,849
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20789789
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/awkwardbirdnoise/pseuds/awkwardbirdnoise
Summary: Petrus is attempting to process his reaction to De Sardet's confession of love, finding himself rather distracted during their time in San Matheus.





	Flowers for a Fool

Petrus stopped in his tracks, foot hovering over a flower he had almost crushed in the absence of his focus. He frowned to himself as he looked down at delicate thing; his movement only causing it to sway before returning back into place.  
It was odd to see such a thing growing in the cracks of San Matheus’s stone-lined streets. Something about it elicited a sadness he didn’t appreciate. He had enough on his mind, he didn’t have the time to get sentimental about a flower.  
He looked up, his eyes suddenly darting around his surroundings. He had only stopped for a moment and yet De Sardet and Kurt had vanished. Panic was beginning to set in.  
Had something happened while he was daydreaming? He would curse himself if he had allowed himself to be so negligent.  
He had only managed to take a few steps when a squeal hit the air. He rushed around the corner to be met with laughter. An eruption of giggling came from the small child who was standing in front of De Sardet as she sat on the ground with her legs crossed.  
The sight brought him an instant sense of relief. She had somehow managed to collect a menagerie of children who were delighted by her attention and her tone of voice. She had begun showing a young one how to properly hold his wooden sword and the others seemed to listen with a focus it was hard to imagine a child having.  
Kurt was standing to the side with his arms crossed, watching over the situation with a cautious eye. He met eyes with Petrus for a moment, giving him a nod to approach. He did so slowly, attention still solely on De Sardet as he stopped next to Kurt.  
“You’re making it too obvious, old man.” Kurt spoke up, his words gaining a startled look.  
“I’m not sure what you’re implying,”  
“I thought you weren’t going to lie anymore?”  
“That promise was to De Sardet alone,” he realized the harshness of his tone wouldn’t save him from this conversation.  
“I’ve known our fearless legate for a long time,”  
“So have I.”  
“Don’t interrupt me,” Kurt’s tone was casual but the steel in his eyes was a threat of its own. “I’ve seen what Green Blood is like when she’s developed a fondness for someone; she’s incapable of keeping it to herself. I know for a fact she’s already told you and despite how I personally feel about it, it’s not my business to intrude.”  
“And yet, here we are.”  
“Because you’re making an ass of yourself. Your whole behavior has shifted since she told you.” Kurt pointed an accusatory finger at him. “Don’t do that. If you’re not willing to accept what she has to offer, don’t make it harder on her.”  
Petrus couldn’t manage to think of anything to respond to that. It wasn’t often that he was completely without words. Most of the time, it was either out of shame or because the offending party was so right, he couldn’t find a foothold to argue back. Today, it was both.  
It hadn’t been long since De Sardet had dropped her confession on him and yet, she had managed to not only blindside him but follow it with words that had halted any kind of response.  
_“I’m not asking you to love me back.”___  
What was he supposed to say to that, really?  
He was angry with himself now. He could have managed to say something. Anything would have been better than letting her just walk away.  
But…  
That’s what he was; a coward.  
He couldn’t say anything because somehow, he wasn’t sure his answer would have truly been “no.” He had no right to ruin another’s life and yet he couldn’t manage to deny what Kurt had so bluntly pointed out.  
He seemed to come back to his senses as he heard De Sardet gasp.  
She was grinning at a girl that had a collection of flowers cradled in her dress. He watched the Legate bow her head as the children took turns placing the flowers in her hair. She beckoned Kurt over, the little girl demanding he accept a flower to put in his hat and he was helpless to refuse. De Sardet and the child cackled victoriously.  
There was something about her laugh that didn’t seem right, however. He couldn’t pinpoint whether it was her or just his own sense of bitterness about how she could act like nothing had changed. His inability to decipher which meant that he would keep the thought to himself for now.  
It was then he noticed one of the children rush around the corner only to return grasping a handful of green. To his surprise, he was holding the very flower Petrus had almost destroyed earlier. The tiny hand holding it out to De Sardet with the affection and boldness only a childhood crush could manage.  
She chuckled, taking it as she shook her head. “Thank you but I think a flower like this would suit Petrus more than me.”  
Her words surprised him. She was good at that; saying the unexpected.  
“I don’t understand what you mean,” he started as he watched her climb to her feet and walk towards him.  
“I saw one like it in the street earlier,” she began again, fingers touching the white petals as they faded into the violet center. “Elegant but capable of withstanding the toughest of changes. It suits you.”  
She had placed the flower in his hand, not allowing him the chance to rebuke it as she turned back to the children.  
He stood on the outskirts of the scene quietly until De Sardet managed to free herself to carry on with their mission outside the city. He watched as she happily exited the gates, walking ahead of them on the road.  
“Aren’t you going to put your hat back on, Green Blood?”  
“But if I do that, it’ll crush the flowers.” She argued with Kurt, earning an annoyed click of his tongue.  
“That’s a small concern compared to the usual amount of people who try to come for your head.”  
“My head is my head. A hat isn’t going to keep them from chopping it off if they want to. I at least plan to leave a pretty corpse.” She chuckled at the joke she had just made but Petrus did not seem to enjoy it.  
“Such talk should not come up so casually.” He snapped.  
De Sardet blinked in surprise, “Yes… I know… I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it like that.”  
Kurt shot Petrus another look as the group continued on quietly. Petrus couldn’t stand it.  
He hadn’t meant to snap but the nonchalance of the situation had managed to evoke a response from him as well as the realization of what had truly bothered him about De Sardet’s behavior.  
He was composing a way to apologize in his head, ready to try the beginnings of an open conversation where he could speak without offending and ask about what was bothering him when fire cut through the path in front of them.  
“Trap!” De Sardet shouted.  
Kurt responded with the expected enthusiasm of a man who didn’t appreciate being ambushed, his great sword cleaving into a bandit who had emerged from the trees with a dagger. De Sardet was just as ready to respond, dodging a blade before kicking out the man’s knee and firing her gun directly into his temple.  
De Sardet turned to Petrus, eyes growing wide as he seemed to freeze. He watched the usual mask of confidence dissolve as she looked past him, her next words belayed by her actions.  
“Petrus! Move!”  
She rammed into him, the thunder of a rifle splitting through the air as blood entered his line of vision. Petrus managed to steady himself on one knee as he watched De Sardet crumple to the ground, with a fresh wound in her shoulder. His attention went to man now reloading in a hurry. Petrus didn’t even think before he moved. Kurt turned just in time to watch a surge of magic energy slam the man into a tree; the force of which not allowing the man to stay intact.  
“Green Blood!” Kurt was already moving to De Sardet’s side as Petrus turned.  
The same fear from before had surfaced as he watched Kurt move her. She hissed in response, still breathing. Petrus didn’t allow the smallest bit of relief to sway him despite him now drawing closer with the knowledge she was only injured.  
“We need to get her back to the estate!” Kurt moved to pick her up, only for Petrus to stop him.  
“I’ll carry her! Be ready if there are more!”  
Despite his disapproval, Kurt nodded in agreement. He stood back and allowed Petrus to lift De Sardet up gently.  
“Heh… I knew I forgot something… making potions…”  
“Hush now, we’re not that far from the city. Save your energy.”  
“This isn’t how I fantasized being… in your…”  
De Sardet rambled off, losing consciousness and adding a new sense of urgency to the situation.  
What he had realized before that was ever present now, was that sometimes when she laughed, it almost sounded like she wanted to cry. She did so often and yet never once shed a tear or complained about the unfairness of it all. She had always carried her head high despite the burdens placed on her and that was something that he couldn’t help noticing in passing but never fully acknowledging until now.  
_“I’m not asking you to love me back.”___  
What an annoying sentence. Appalling. He absolutely couldn’t stand it now.  
Petrus paced across the floor in front of the fireplace having been shooed out of De Sardet’s room by Siora and Aphra who had seemingly had enough of his overbearing attitude. He removed his helmet, running his fingers through his hair as he growled small, broken, furious sentences under his breath.  
“There’s no need to get worked up, Petrus.” Vasco spoke up, much to his misfortune.  
“I did not ask for your opinion.”  
“Don’t take that tone with me just because you got De Sardet shot-!” The Naut didn’t even manage to finish his statement as he ducked to avoid Petrus flinging his helmet at him. “I’m going! I’m going! Stubborn, old man; who do you think you’re fooling?”  
“If you throw something at me, I _will_ shoot you,” Aphra’s voice came from the stairs as she descended them. She was wiping the blood from her hands with a handkerchief. “I removed the bullet; Siora is taking care of the rest. I need to go wash up.” She looked to Petrus knowingly, “If you could manage not to agitate her condition, go on up to see her.”__  
Petrus didn’t wait to pass Aphra on the stairs, heading for De Sardet’s room with haste. The only time he seemed to stop was right in front of the door, gathering his confidence before he took a deep breath and stepped inside. The sight of De Sardet resting in bed with her numerous pillows propping her up as she waived away Siora’s concern.  
De Sardet looked up at Petrus with a tired smile, “Oh, hello. Everyone’s coming to see me today.”  
“You will watch her?” Siora stated as she stepped away from the bed. “Tell her how foolish she is being; she will not listen to me.”  
“Aw, Siora…” De Sardet whined as Siora disappeared into the hall.  
De Sardet could feel the fury radiating from Petrus, unable to meet eyes with him as he walked closer to the bed. He settled into the chair next to the bed, creating a tension that made it harder for De Sardet to speak up until he managed to start the conversation himself.  
“Absolutely foolish!”  
“Hey! I saved your life!”  
“You were not asked to.”  
“I didn’t ask for your permission to.”  
He hadn’t meant to start an argument; now clearing his throat to begin again.  
“I did not mean to make it seem as if I were unappreciative towards you; thank you. The thought that you still value my life after… everything is…”  
“You called _me_ foolish. I said what I said, and I already told you, I didn’t need a response-!”__  
“Which is positively selfish!” He was on his feet again, “Do you not understand that you are valued by the people around you?! Do you not understand that you’ve managed to become so important to so many others?! Do-?!” his voice dropped, tone losing his edge as it fell to a whisper. “Does how I feel not matter to you?”  
“Oh…” De Sardet shift in the bed uncomfortably. “I didn’t think about it like that…”  
He dropped back into the chair, sighing as he clasped his hands together. The slight tremor they seemed to have now hadn’t escaped his notice; neither had the curious glances that De Sardet was giving him.  
“It has been quite so time since someone has managed to agitate me to the point of yelling.”  
“Oh…” this response sounded a bit disappointed, so he continued.  
“It’s nothing so direct, I’m afraid. What annoys me is the lack of self-awareness you possess; you give nothing for the delicacies of conversation or the risk to yourself.”  
“I mean… with the state of things in Teer Fradee and how I grew up, honesty seemed the best way to go-!”  
“Please, allow me to finish.” He interrupted, if only so he didn’t lose his nerve. “While we have been traveling together, I had acted in a sense of familiarity to distance myself. At one point, I had seemed to have forgotten that the Legate De Sardet and the little girl chasing her cousin with a wooden sword were the same person. I had told you the truth and despite it all, you hadn’t chased me away and it felt… freeing. Who was this heroic woman people would tell stories about?”  
She chuckled, flustered by the compliment. She looked at him inquisitively, waiting for him to continue.  
“And then, as the Coins Guard were getting ready to assassinate everyone of importance… you said _that_.”__  
“That I love you?”  
“In the most selfish of circumstances! I had half a mind to lock you in the cellar with Constantin!” that earned a laugh from De Sardet as the statement seemed to subside most of his anger. “The idea that you thought I valued you that little… that somehow made me feel more ashamed than the idea of entertaining a relationship with someone younger. Not to mention what might happen to your reputation-!”  
“Wait, go back. What did you just say?”  
He figured that would catch her attention. “You had to have noticed the changes,”  
“I mean, you started calling me by name and there were times that did become… a bit awkward.”  
“I realized that you have always been forced into a position to help others and you will without hesitation.”  
“Constantin does joke about me being the hero to his damsel in distress,”  
“Even the hero needs help.” Petrus spoke up, “But you’d never let just anyone do that.”  
“Obviously.” She snorted at the idea, trying to humor him as she was unsure what he was getting at.  
“So I guess that would be reserved for someone who loves you.”  
“Why not?”  
“Then that’s me.” He had stated it so plainly that De Sardet didn’t react at first.  
“What… did you say?”  
“I love you.”  
“Ah. I see. I must be dead- ow!” she quickly smacked his hand away as he pinched her arm.  
“None of that.” He frowned. “Talk seriously for once.”  
“I do! I mean… I am. You’re the one who’s saying strange things.” She frowned, the wheels in her head turning. “You’re… not just saying that because you think I almost died, right? Because this was nothing-!”  
“I’m not one to say such things out of pity. The events that transpired today are a separate matter of discussion that I am not happy with. Really, who jumps in front of the man wearing armor?”  
“A damn fool, apparently.”  
“Well,” he chuckled, “I suppose I can let it slide since it led us to this discussion. How are feeling, by the way?”  
“Like I’m dreaming,” she looked down, flustered. “But you meant my injuries, didn’t you? I should be fine soon.”  
“That’s good.”  
She heard the scratch of the chair against the wood floor as Petrus moved it closer to the bed. He slid a finger under her chin to pull her attention back to him. The distance between the two closed as he placed a soft kiss on her lips before caressing his hand against her jaw.  
“Can you… do that again?”  
“I think that’s enough excitement for today. Siora will no doubt punish the both of us if you don’t rest.”  
“You’re right… but another day?”  
She looked at him expectantly as he pulled the small flower from his pack and tucked it gently behind her ear.  
“Yes; a promise for another day, love.”

**Author's Note:**

> Wrote this after discovering I shared a love for Petrus with a friend. Though it's my first time posting here and I don't fully understand the formatting, please enjoy and I will be writing more!


End file.
